Crescent Moon
by Sensible One
Summary: Hannibal Rising, Book-based. There was someone Hannibal liked just as much as Lady Murasaki. If not a bit more. HannibalOC
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One 

Year 1941. Young Celeste Kanzaki stood in the middle of a big garden. Tall trees towering over the field, leaves rustling. Colorful flowers bending gently in the wind. The girl clad in a simple sky blue dress reaching her knees sat down on the grass, then pushed herself down, her back against the soil, her blonde hair spreading over the green grass. She watched he white clouds pass the sky lazily, she counted in her mind the time as a particularly shaped cloud covered the sun for a moment. Three minutes, forty-two seconds. Then, there was a one minute pause and the sun was shining without the clouds intruding its' rays. There was a loud shout coming from her left side, probably her brothers playing football again. The noise made some birds fly up from the trees. The small birds flew above the girl's head. One single feather landed in her open palm. Celeste watched. Her eyes reflected the blue and white mix of the clouded sky. Her eyes, which she hated.

Three boys, all older than the girl, came up to her, their face sweaty, large grins on their young, still childish faces.

"Come on, Cele, let's play!" Edmund, the eldest, said.

"I'm busy." Was her calm reply. Her passive face contrasted with the boys' excitement greatly.

"With what?" Nicholas asked, cocking a brow in amusement.

"With watching."

"Watching? What, clouds?"

Celeste's thoughtful expression finally broke and a small smile appeared on her lips. "Life passing by."

The boys laughed at the silly response. Celeste laughed too. She got up from the grass, dusted her dress from the dirt and chased after her brothers.

-

Fire. It was everywhere. Spreading around in the whole house, it was in every room, in every corner, on the cook, on the servants, who were still running in an attack of panic and fear, on the youngest brother, who was slowly crawling towards her. She stood, as if paralyzed, her wide eyes watching the scene before her. One of the maids turned in her direction, a soundless scream escaping her mouth before a piece of wood had fallen over her, covering her bunt body. The look of pure panic carved itself in Celeste's mind forever.

The house was falling apart around her, yet she couldn't will her body to escape. The girl hadn't done anything to move. Jonathan, the youngest of her brothers, one year older than Celeste, raised his head. She stared back at him, feeling the same mixture of emotions that overcame the now burnt to death servants' senses slowly rising inside her small body, like a serpent lazily raising its' head to suddenly attack with its' poisonous fangs. The moment it attacked was just when Jonathan locked his brown eyes with hers. Her mouth opened suddenly, releasing a loud, shrill scream. The girl struggled, not knowing what to do. She knew she'd die soon, the fire was surrounding her, the smoke was already filling her lungs. She turned around, not wanting to see the hell that had been created in her house. Then, Celeste spotted an opening, a small area the fire had not yet covered. Her mind was oddly blank, as if shut down, the body moving on its' own. She ran, ran, ran towards the hole in the wall.

Jonathan lied on the floor, the flames consuming his body. His last conscious thoughts concerned his younger sister. No, his half-sister. It didn't matter; he loved her all the same. He watched as she turned around, her back facing him, and ran away towards the wall. His 10-year-old mind marveled at the unusual color of her eyes. His own closed, the pain giving him blessed oblivion just before death.

-

Five men wearing Nazi uniforms stood in the garden, speaking loudly in German and laughing. The body of a man lied on the ground, blood flowing from the gun wounds on his head and chest. Beside him, a petite woman was kneeling, her hands and face covered with blood. She was crying, her head bent down, her black hair – usually shining, silky and smelling of peaches, now dirty, tousled and greasy – as a curtain shadowing her face. A few feet away the body of the middle son was being buried slowly by the falling snow. Nicholas had his eyes cast up, towards the sky, the crescent moon visible in his misty light brown orbs. Edmund staid hidden behind a thick tree, his legs shaking with fear, tears pouring down his cheeks. His clothes were burnt slightly, and the skin on his left arm was red and covered with blebs.

Celeste fell to the ground out of instinct, and began to slowly crawl towards her hidden brother. She was shaking from the cold, fear and pain. Her 9-year-old brain couldn't exactly comprehend what was happening, or what was she feeling at the moment. Maybe it was just fear, pain and shock. Maybe it was the strong desire to live. Maybe it was something else, burning her from the inside, the flames hotter than the actual fire. She didn't know. But, one step at a time. She had to get to Edmund unnoticed.

Edmund watched as the soldiers took turns in raping his mother. He was about to let his fury take over, her wanted desperately to show himself and kill them all. But the exact moment, he caught a slight movement in the corner of his eye. Celeste was crawling towards him, her face dirty and stained with tears. He crouched down and carefully picked her up from the ground. He hugged her tightly, burying his face in her shoulder, wanting to muffle their mothers' screams and the soldiers' laughs. He felt Celeste hugging him back, with equal desperation.

It all happened in an instant. After the five men were done, one of them shot Kasumi Kanzaki, the bullet piercing her forehead and coming out from the other side of her head. Edmund grabbed Celeste and jolted, running as fast as he was able. He reached his motorbike which was untouched by the fire, hopped on and, with Celeste clutched tightly to his chest, started the engine. The soldiers noticed him just then, but it was too late; Edmund disappeared in the forest, his little sister curled up on the bike before him.

-

Celeste stared down at her brother's lifeless body. The bag with groceries which was held by her arm fell to the floor, its' contents spilling at her feet. She fell to her knees.

"Ed…" she whispered, her voice hoarse. "Ed…"

He didn't respond. She didn't expect him to anyway.

A red swastika was painted on the wall in front of her. A red swastika, painted in her brothers' blood. Her brave brothers' blood, the blood of a man who wasn't afraid and openly admitted where his loyalties lie. A person who wasn't afraid to say out loud that he wishes for all Nazi and Soviet soldiers to rot in hell, where they rightfully belonged. His insides were lying beneath him, visible to her eyes. Her tears mixed with his blood on the floor.

"Edmund… Ed." Celeste sobbed, covering his cold hand with hers. It was just as cold.

The crescent moon above shone brightly, illuminating the dirty streets and the small house on the far side. A typical house poor people would live in. In that small brick house, something snapped.

Something snapped inside Celeste.

She got up from the bloody ground and made her way towards the sign on the wall. Pulling out a short knife out of her bag, she crossed out the sign. Then, she began to go through Edmund's personal belongings, searching for something intently. It took her quite a lot of time, but she managed to find a thin notebook under his mattress. She flipped it open. Her different colored eyes shone with an inner light as Celeste read the list of names and her half-brother's plan, he'd thought of everything way ahead. Her brother wanted to get revenge. He couldn't. Now, she was responsible for it all. She wanted to end what her beloved brother had begun. It was because of him that she was still alive. She has to pay him back.

12-year-old, Celeste got up from her knees and grabbed her bag. She packed the most important things she could find among the mess the intruders have made. Some clothes, the groceries she'd bought, and the notebook. Under her own mattress, she found an old photograph. Her mother, Kasumi's husband, his three sons from his first marriage, and Celeste, in the very middle. She hid the picture in the deepest pocket of her bag. The deep need for vendetta reflected in her eyes as she exited the house and walked through the deserted streets of Paris.

One step at a time.

-

Hannibal Lecter followed Lady Murasaki as the two walked through the mass of people. It was Saturday, the day Hannibal was allowed to see his aunt. The boy was holding a basket in his hands and watched as people passed him by. He could read their faces so easily. It was somewhat a disappointment. Everyone was so easy to read, so simple. Except Lady Murasaki, of course. She was a woman as beautiful as she was mysterious. Very.

The woman came to a stop in front of a man, who was selling fresh vegetables. Hannibal paused walking a few feet behind her. Someone brushed past him, shoulder touching his shoulder. He turned slowly. A pleasant smell of peaches reached his nostrils.

It was a girl, he'd say she was his age. 15 years old. Quite tall, but shorter than him by three inches. Long blonde hair stopping just above her waistline. The fringe shadowed her eyes. His eyes traveled to her neck almost automatically. A nice, average long neck. A thin gold chain was wrapped around it and disappeared beneath her light green shirt. Her skin was an odd mixture of Caucasian white and an Asian yellow tint, barely visible. Hannibal doubted anyone but him would've notice such a delicate shade.

The girl raised her head to look at him. Hannibal blinked.

"Sorry." She said quietly, repeating the word in French, Italian, German and, to his slight surprise, Japanese. Hannibal stared into her eyes with a passive expression. The left one was dark brown, it looked a bit similar to Lady Murasaki's eyes. The dark, almost black color that was significant to the Japanese. The right eye, however, held a light, contrasting shade of blue. Hannibal had never seen eyes like this, but he could recall a short note which was written in one of the books he's been studying biology from.

_Heterochromia_. In anatomy, heterochromia refers to a difference in coloration, usually of the irises but also of hair or skin. It's a result of the relative excess or lack of melanin, a pigment. It may be inherited, or due to disease or injury.

"It's all right." He replied in English. Still looking at her eyes. She, however, hadn't grown tense of uncomfortable under his piercing, penetrating gaze. Quite the contrary; she began to study him through his orbs as well.

"Come, Hannibal," Lady Murasaki called for the boy just as a man yelled, "Get over here, you filthy orphan!"

Hannibal's eyes shifted and focused on the man. Short, overweight, bald, small, pig-like eyes, a broken nose. Dressed in a white cook uniform, stained here and there. He held a basket filed with groceries and tapped his right foot impatiently, expectantly staring at the blonde-haired girl. Lady Murasaki also shifted her attention to the man, but he pretended not to see the beautiful woman and the frown on her face.

The girl turned her head slowly, meeting the man's gaze with an empty one. The cook couldn't handle her stare for long and turned around, pretending he wasn't afraid. Pretending that he had power over the young girl. The girl threw Hannibal one last glance before turning and running off towards the fat man and taking the basked from his hands. The two soon disappeared in the crowd.

"The girl has quite a captivating gaze, doesn't she?" Lady Murasaki asked as she and Hannibal proceeded down he street.

Hannibal didn't reply.

* * *

_**Author's Note**__: This was originally an One-Shot, but it turned out to be a bit too long, so I've decided to split it into a short story. It took me a total of 5 Chapters. I will add the next one this Wednesday, so stay tuned :)_


	2. Chapter 2

_A big 'Thank you' to_ Phantom Cleric_, for the kind, gentle Review xD Also, thanks to those who have taken their time to read Chapter One. Hopefully, you liked it at least a bit._

Chapter Two

Hannibal entered the Leet Gallery. He paused just as the doors closed behind him. Again, the familiar scent of peaches reached his nose a moment before he noticed the girl. Blonde hair swished gently as she turned to look at him with those eyes. He once tried to draw her eyes, the same day he had first seen her. The drawing was lying beneath his other sketches, beneath the sketches from the Luxemburg Gardens and Lady Murasaki.

_Monsieur_ Leet had chosen this moment to interrupt.

"Ah, good evening, _monsieur_ Lecter! Very good to see you. I am hoping that you're well." He said in his fake silky voice. He took Hannibal's drawings, then turned abruptly towards the girl, who apparently lost interest in both of them and started tracing the outline of a copy of Caravaggio's 'Basket of Fruit' delicately with her finger "Miss Kanzaki, please do not touch unless you're buying something!"

Miss Kanzaki. The Orphan Kanzaki. Hannibal still hadn't gotten her name. He will.

-

_Monsieur_ Lecter. Hannibal. Hannibal Lecter.

Celeste withdrew her hand without looking at Leet nor the boy. She continued to study the rest of the paintings, aware of Hannibal's eyes on her. Soon, the boy transferred his attention elsewhere, choosing to stare intently at the paintings as well. He was searching, but for what, Celeste couldn't tell. The Gallery became as quiet as it was before, with _monsieur_ Leet returning to his previous tasks of reorganizing the sculptures and such. She went further. Ah. Paintings showing meadows, hills, forests. Nice paintings, all copies. Her eyes set on the next one and she froze. A dark blue, almost black sky. A few dark grey clouds. No stars. A silver crescent moon in the middle.

Celeste took an unconscious step back, accidentally bumping into a small table; a light red vase with dark red roses which was standing on top of it shook and was pulled down by gravity.

-

_Monsieur_ Leet looked up to see his expensive vase falling down. Hannibal watched also, paying more attention to the girl. She jumped on top of the table, where the falling vase had been standing a millisecond ago, and managed to take hold of the object mere inches above the floor. Red roses fell to the ground in silence. The girl jumped back, her feet meeting the floor as silently as the roses, the vase back in its' original position, no damage visible.

"I'm sorry, _monsieur_ Leet," she uttered in a voice stripped of sincerity. She bent down, gathered the roses and put them in the vase. She looked up to meet the man's gaze "See, nothing happened."

"You…" Leet was speechless, but not for long "You nearly broke it! Do you have any idea how much it would cost you?! I bet you've never even seen such amount of money!"

"I said I was sorry for rising your blood pressure, _monsieur_ Leet, for nothing more." The girl replied calmly, though with a hint of impatience "No damage is done."

"_Monsieur _Leet, may I get my money already?" Hannibal cut in before the angry owner of the Gallery could shout at the girl more.

"Of course, of course, _monsieur _Lecter." Lee threw a warning glare at the blonde "And if I see you touching anything, I'll throw you out of here! Literally!" and he disappeared to get Hannibal's money for his drawings.

The girl let out the air through her mouth. "I should have let it break." She said to herself. Hannibal heard.

"He really might've throw you out of here." He paused slightly, then added "I doubt he would manage to do it literally, though."

She looked at him, eyebrows raised in amusement. "Why do you think so?"

"Am I not correct?"

"Yes." she smiled, a small, genuine smile "Yes, you are, _monsieur_ Hannibal Lecter."

"You have unusual eyes."

The smile vanished in an instant. "I've noticed."

"You know my name. I wish to know yours as well."

The smile returned for a brief moment. "My mother liked the color blue. She could spend countless hours lying on the dirty soil, dusting her clothes, just to watch the sky. She loved the color so much that she decided to pay her respect by giving her first child the same name as her favorite shade of blue." She tapped her finger against one of the paintings, the one showing a light green meadow under a clear blue sky, with a simple wooden hut in the corner.

Hannibal stared. He compared the blue on the painting, underneath her finger, and the blue of her right eye he couldn't see at the moment, yet had perfectly memorized. Almost exactly the same. A deep yet light color. Cerulean. Azure.

"_Monsieur_ Leet told you not to touch anything, Celeste Kanzaki."

Her back was facing him, so he couldn't see her smile. "I usually don't follow orders from strangers, _monsieur_ Lecter. Hannibal. Whichever might I call you?"

"'Hannibal' would suffice, since we're the same age."

"That's nice." She turned to look at him, the shadow of her previous smile still visible on her face "See you later, I hope, Hannibal."

She passed him, shoulder touching his lightly. The door closed behind her quietly. The smell of peaches lingered in the air for a few seconds as Hannibal gazed at the painting with the meadow and the sky. 'Tranquility', by an Italian artist Luca Bellusci. Hannibal stared at the clear blue sky on the painting. It was tranquil indeed.

-

Celeste was scanning the boxes filled with vegetables, looking for some clean and fresh ones. _Monsieur_ Meyer, a cook in a local restaurant she's been serving for two years now in exchange for money, ordered her to pick up only the nicest looking vegetables. The man was quite rude towards her most of the time, and he would rather bark orders than speak to her normally, but the girl could easily sense fear coming from him whenever they were completely alone in the kitchen. It was obvious that the cook was afraid of her constantly indifferent façade, her eternal calmness, the way she handled knifes and, most of all, her eyes. People fear of the unknown, as Kyohei-_sensei_ had told her once. Celeste wasn't sure whether she enjoyed being feared or not. Kyohei_-sensei_ had said that she should be feared only during a battle.

Then again, Kyohei-_sensei_ was now dead due to the illness that overcame him a month ago. Celeste was left alone again. She had no one. No one but herself.

Celeste spotted a big, fresh carrot and reached out to grab it. Her hand compressed around the orange vegetable just as another hand touched the other end.

"Oh, excuse me,"

Celeste looked up to see a beautiful Asian woman with silky black hair made in an elegant bun and dark eyes. A Japanese woman. Celeste was sure she'd seen her before.

"You can have it, Madame." The blonde let go of the carrot and tore her gaze away from the woman's curious stare.

"Thank you, young lady," the woman smiled "I believe I've seen you somewhere before. Had we met?"

"No, I don't think so," Celeste looked around the market. The man selling meat oppositely looked up and shot her a friendly smile. He had dark brown eyes which looked maroon in the sunlight. "I do remember seeing you with Hannibal a couple weeks ago, here."

"Hannibal?" the Japanese woman raised her eyebrows in polite curiosity "Have you two met?"

"Yes, a few days ago, in the Leet Gallery." Celeste wanted to ask if Hannibal had said something about her to this woman, but stopped herself just in time. The woman seemed to read her thoughts.

"He never mentioned making any new friends, Miss…?"

"Celeste Kanzaki." Celeste supplied.

The woman looked even more surprised. "Kanzaki? That sounds like a Japanese name. Are you from Japan?"

Celeste hesitated. "My mother was Japanese. She gave me a contrasting name to partially wipe out her memories of Japan."

"I see. Well, I believe Hannibal hadn't told you about me. My name is Murasaki Shikibu, I'm his aunt."

"_Nice to meet you, Murasaki-san,_" Celeste said in flawless Japanese while bowing deeply in respect. Lady Murasaki nodded her head gracefully in return.

"_Likewise._"

Celeste glanced discreetly at her watch. "I have to go now, I still have plenty of work for today. It was a pleasure to meet you, Murasaki_-san_, goodbye!" the girl bowed again.

"Goodbye, Celeste," Lady Murasaki watched her run off. She held the fresh carrot between her fingers gently before putting it back to the box.

* * *

_**Author's Note: **__As promised. Expect the next one this Friday. Oh, the painting and the artisrt ("Tranquility", Luca Bellusci) are made up. I don't think a painting like the one described in this Chapter, or the artist, exist._


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

The small bell jingled, announcing another customer. Seventeen years old Hannibal greeted the man behind the counter – who wasn't very fond of the boy; he'd bought many books, read them, then returned them, asking for a refund. Hannibal went between the shelves, looking for interesting titles. He paused. A copy of Euklides' 'Elements' was resting in someone's hands. It was opened, and streaks of blonde hair were lying on the pages.

Celeste looked up, locking gazes with Hannibal. She smiled slightly.

"Good afternoon, Hannibal. What a surprise to see you here, but then again, it isn't that strange."

"I often visit this place." He replied, nodding his head in polite greeting. He and the girl have met a few times in the past two years, spending hours on talking about everything. Their interests were quite similar, and Hannibal found himself enjoying her presence. He hadn't been feeling as alone as he had before meeting her. He wasn't allowed to see Lady Murasaki during the week, so he filled his need for company using Celeste. Finally, someone who could compete with his intellect. Someone who wasn't so easy to read.

"I know. I heard you're making quite a business here, buying books, then returning them again. Nice," her smile widened and her eyes shone with amusement.

"I am but a mere student," he eyes the book in her hand. "Are you buying that?"

"Oh no, I'm even more sly than you, Hannibal," Celeste grinned "I read here and save my precious time."

"I see. And the owner still allows you to come here and leech off of him?"

"He isn't even aware of my presence most of the time." She pointed at a partially open window behind her back "It takes a lot of skill to squeeze in here, but it's worth it."

"You're quite flexible, aren't you?"

"Took me years of practice."

Hannibal didn't ask where and why she'd practice such things. He knew perfectly well what Celeste was doing to gain money for food, clothes and other necessities. He'd often watched her as she made her way through the crowd, her hand vanishing in someone's pocket, then showing up again, the wallet disappearing inside her bag. As far as he'd known, Celeste was never caught red-handed. He'd also noticed that she's always stealing from wealthy gentlemen, how noble of her. Guess the money she earns working for the cook wasn't enough for her female needs.

Beside the pleasant smell of peaches Hannibal came to like, he could smell the scent of petrol on her clothes. She must live somewhere near a gas station. It didn't really matter.

"I like this book. I think I'll make an exception and buy it." Celeste turned to the boy and he noticed something odd in her expression, something flashing in her eyes. It lasted a second. "How's Lady Murasaki doing?"

"Good." Hannibal grabbed a book and flipped the pages to read its' content. "She's a bit lonely, but she's doing fine."

"She shouldn't feel lonely, she has you."

"Only during weekends and holidays."

"Are you with her all the time? Do you think of her when you're apart?"

His eyes met hers in an emotionless gaze. "Always."

Celeste closed the book she was holding. Hannibal read the title again. Memories flooded his mind, yet he hadn't gotten lost among them.

"Would you mind buying this for me? I'd rather not blow my cover by suddenly showing up in the bookstore, exiting when I haven't entered first." Celeste fished out a wallet from her bag and handed Hannibal the amount of money to cover the price. "You'll give it to me when we meet again, maybe tomorrow. You can read it, if you wish." She put the wallet back into her bag and walked up to the window. She looked through it. There was a man with his dog on the other side of the street. No one else. The girl climbed up on the windowsill.

"Tomorrow… Should I visit you in your house near the petrol station?"

Celeste froze, with one hand resting against he glass. The recovery was quick. "I prefer the Luxemburg Gardens." She threw him an amused glance through her shoulder "Much more romantic."

Hannibal watched her as she squeezed her head carefully through the free space of the partially open window. Head first, then the rest, like a cat. One step at a time. Soon, Celeste's whole silhouette was on the other side of the slightly dirty glass. She flashed him a smile, or a smirk, once again reminding Hannibal of a cat. Celeste fixed her hair and started walking, disappearing from his view.

-

Night had fallen upon Paris, the stars shining brightly in the sky. Celeste and Hannibal stopped walking near the crossroads, the girl holding the copy of 'Elements' close to her chest.

"Thanks again for getting it for me," she indicated the book.

Hannibal nodded. "It wasn't a problem. You entrusted me with your money."

"How could I not?" she chuckled "I'd never ask anyone to buy something for me with their own money."

"What if someone would buy you a gift willingly? Would you not accept it?"

"Depends what the gift would be," Celeste looked at the boy. He was taller than her, taller by a good few inches. The top of her head came up to his nose. "And who would buy it."

The big clock on top of a church tower announced ten o'clock. Hannibal counted the bells in his mind.

"Well, I better get going. We'll continue our discussion some other time," Celeste hesitated. He noticed. Two seconds. "Good night, Hannibal."

"Good night."

She turned, waved shortly and made her way towards an empty road. He followed her with is eyes, noticing a man appearing from around the corner behind her. The man's figure was hunched and screamed 'suspicious'. The smell of cheap alcohol hit his nose violently. Hannibal waited a moment, then, when he saw Celeste turning right and the man following her closely, decided to join.

-

Celeste heard heavy footsteps behind her. She was being followed, but she willed herself not to let panic take over. Everything was all right. The person behind her – the footsteps clearly indicated a man – had probably been following her by pure coincidence.

She turned right. The man turned right four seconds later. Celeste knew why was he stalking her. The wind blew against her back, pushing her long hair forward to cover her face. She inhaled deeply through her nose. Alcohol.

"Give me some fun time, would ya, doll?"

She ignored his slurry voice. Closing her eyes, she focused on his footsteps behind her. At first they were steady, but soon began to get closer, heavy, irregular. She could feel his stinky breath on her neck. Her closed lids clenched as she desperately tried to make him go away with the sheer power of her mind. An image of her mother flashed in her mind, her mother spread across the snow, five soldiers hovering above her, laughing. One of them knelt down. The others watched on, cheered, laughed. _"You are a fruit of a fruitless tree, Celeste"_, a voice uttered quietly, the voice of ther mother's mother _"You are the unwanted. You were forced upon her. Does Kasumi love you? I doubt it."_

The man decided to attack.

Celeste felt his large hand brush against her forearm, wanting to circle itself around it. Giving him no chance for that, she spun around and threw her leg up, her foot connecting with the man's chin. He stumbled backwards, blood pouring from the corner of his mouth.

"You bitch!" he yelled and lunged forward "You'll pay for that with your ass!"

Celeste used the same leg as before to kick him in the stomach, causing him to pause his attack for a short moment. Then, she spun around, the drunk felt her long hair slapping him across the face. Half a second later, the hair was replaced by her foot. The powerful kick made his lower jaw snap. The man fell to his knees with a yelp of pain and anger. He somehow got to his feet and took out a knife from his pocket, the other hand holding his chin.

"I'll kill you, bitch!" he ran towards her with the knife ready to plunge into her skin. Celeste waited until the last second, then jumped out of his way and kicked him behind his knees, causing the man to crash against the ground. The girl circled him and stopped before the kneeling man.

"I didn't even had to use my hands." Celeste uttered, more to herself, with a slight hint of amazement in her voice. The man grunted. She threw one last powerful kick aimed at his chest. He flew back his head banging against the hard concrete. Was he just unconscious or already dead, she didn't know. She didn't care.

As the sound of fight died down, Celeste noted that she wasn't alone. She turned around. Hannibal stared at her with his usual unreadable, expressionless face. He didn't look amazed, angry, surprised, disapproving, nothing. It was just the empty gaze of his maroon eyes.

"Hannibal," Celeste began, but couldn't find the words to finish. Neither of them spoke for a long moment.

"Now I know not to worry when you're returning home late." The boy said, breaking the tense silence.

"He wanted to rape me." Celeste defended herself, not knowing why exactly. She didn't want Hannibal to judge her, to be afraid of her or hate her just like the rest. The whisper in the back of her mind assured her that he won't, but the sudden wave of shock and panic overcame her. "I had to defend myself! He doesn't deserve to live, to harm women who cannot do what I just had done!"

"I don't think what you did was wrong, Celeste." He rarely used her name. But when he did, Celeste thought her name sounded beautiful when spoken by him. "It surprised me, however. You know the East Martial Arts." It was a statement, not a question. Yet, she answered.

"Yes." Celeste forced her heart to calm down, she forced her body to stop shaking. She wasn't sure if she was still scared or furious. _"You are the unwanted."_

Hannibal studied Celeste shortly, his eyes focusing on hers. The brown color was dark, darker than usual, it resembled a black bottomless pit. The blue was a cold, icy shade. Both her eyes were flashing with an inner light Hannibal thought he'd recognized. They flashed red.

"Why were you afraid?"

"I was afraid he'd do something to me. I didn't want to fight, and I was afraid that I will be forced to do this." She looked at him with wide eyes "I don't like to do this."

"You don't like to fight or you don't like to confront rapists?"

Celeste was silent for a few seconds. "The latter mostly."

"Is it because your mother had been raped? Is it because you are the result?"

"Hannibal…" she begged silently, eyes shining with unshed tears. The boy took a step forward, walking past the lying man. Celeste wanted to take a step back, but found herself rooted to the spot.

"Your surname gives out the Japanese blood in you, yet the blonde hair tells a different story." Hannibal continued mercilessly "Your eyes show it all. During the American occupation over Japan, your mother has been captured and raped by an American soldier, maybe even several soldiers. Her and his, or theirs, DNA mixed in you, giving you those unusual eyes that cause people to look away in fear." He stopped in front of her, staring down at her pale face and pleading eyes. Those different-colored eyes.

"Most of the people don't know what heterochromia is, that's why they fear you because of your eye color. They hate you because you're different." Hannibal paused, his eyes searching her face for a reaction. She showed many emotions at once. Some of them even he couldn't name.

"I don't hate you, Celeste."

Her arms circled around his back, palms squeezing the thin material of his shirt. Her forehead rested on his shoulder, blonde hair falling forward. He made no movement to hug her back, partially because it was unexpected and Hannibal didn't know how to react to such a gesture. He simply stood there, allowing Celeste's silent tears to stain the front of his shirt.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Lady Murasaki bid goodbye to inspector Popil after a dinner they shared. It was obvious that the man found her attractive and decided to win her over any way he could. The woman walked slowly down the streets towards her apartment. She was thinking about Hannibal. She was worried about him, worried that the darkness would finally consume him. She'd lost her beloved husband, now she began to lose another beloved person. Hannibal was slowly pulled towards darkness, and he was doing nothing to stop it. He didn't want it to stop.

"Good evening, Lady Murasaki."

Lady Murasaki snapped out of her musings an came face to face with a blonde-haired girl, around 18 years old. The same age as Hannibal. It took the woman a second to recognize Celeste.

"Good evening, Celeste." Lady Murasaki greeted back politely. She noted the smile on the younger girl's lips. It sent shivers running down her spine, but she didn't let it show. "How have you been?"

"Fine, fine," Celeste replied airily as she fell in step with the woman "I've gone on a small trip to the land of my birth, came back this morning."

"You went to Japan?"

"Yes, to Hiroshima. Have you been there, Lady Murasaki? A beautiful place, devastated by war. Such a shame."

"I was born in Hiroshima."

"Oh really? Were you planning to go back someday?"

Lady Murasaki clenched her fists on the delicate fabric of her dress "Yes, I think I will in the near future."

"How nice. I have to warn you though, the place is a mess. I've came across quite a number of people, who were dying due to the after-radiation illness. Sad."

"Celeste," Lady Murasaki couldn't take it any more "Can I talk to you?"

"I believe we're already doing that, Madame."

"No, I mean about Hannibal." Celeste clenched and unclenched her jaw and forced herself to act normally.

"Of course we can talk about Hannibal." The blonde looked at the woman "Is something wrong with him?"

"Hannibal is in danger." Lady Murasaki discreetly looked around "I don't think I can help him, and the thought saddens me. You, as his friend, are able to do something to help him get out of the danger."

"Hannibal? Danger? I cannot imagine that," Celeste shook her head "What is endangering him?"

"He is. He is dangerous to himself. He wants to do something he shouldn't be doing. Passing judgment over others is not his responsibility!" Lady Murasaki inhaled deeply "Celeste… Help him get out of the darkness."

Celeste stopped walking abruptly. Lady Murasaki also paused and turned to look at he girl. Her blonde hair shadowed the view of her face and Lady Murasaki couldn't read her expression.

"_Murasaki-san…_" Celeste spoke in Japanese "_Do you love Hannibal?_"

Silence. A heartbeat. A gentle swish of the wind.

"_Yes._"

"_Then… We have more in common than I would've guessed._" It came out as a quiet murmur, barely audible in the wind. Lady Murasaki heard it clearly. Celeste raised her head, hair uncovering her face. The Japanese woman surpassed another shiver as she stared into her eyes; not only the contrasting colors made her want to take a step back, it was the emotion behind them, the unreadable emotion that pierced through Lady Murasaki like a cold, ruthless katana.

"_But here is where the similarities end._" Celeste bowed, never breaking the eye-contact "Good day to you, Lady Murasaki."

Lady Murasaki watched her back as the young woman walked away, vanishing amongst the crowd. The wind blew past her again. It was much colder than it should be at this time of the year.

-

Hannibal was walking slowly through the field, forming a plan while thinking about Enrikas Dortlich and Zigmas Milko, two Lithuanian men he'd killed recently – two of the people who'd killed and eaten his sister Mischa during the war. There were six men responsible for his sister's death. One of them died during the war, two had been killed by him. That leaves three. Bronys Grentz, who's been living in Canada; Petras Kolnas, or _monsieur_ Kleber, as he named himself, was an easy target; he owned a restaurant in Paris. Hannibal found the last man, Vladis Grutas, recently. Hannibal had taken a trip to check out his house in Porte de Montempoivre. He'd left his motorcycle in the nearby bushes, 400 meters away from the gate. The plan was ready, what Hannibal needed is a bit of time, not too much.

He was thinking about his vendetta, which was coming to an end. He was thinking about Lady Murasaki, about a hot bath in the baths in his uncle's, Count Lecter's house, the oranges floating in the water. The oranges changed, their color lightened, and oranges became peaches. This made him think about Celeste. Hannibal could almost smell the soft scent of peaches around him. A strange vision occurred in his mind; Lady Murasaki putting her hand on his chest, in the heart area, just like she's been doing since he was 13. Her beautiful pale skin took a darker shade, her right eye changed to light blue and hair became golden. Celeste threw her arms around him, burying her head in his shoulder. She backed away and became Lady Murasaki once again. "Promise me," she whispered, kissing him on the lips "Promise me, Hannibal."

But he'd already made a promise to Mischa. Lady Murasaki was replaced by Celeste. She was holding the book, 'Elements', close to her chest. She paused before bidding him good bye, her eyes traveling down to his lips. It lasted two seconds, not more. She turned and melted into the darkness.

Hannibal heard a car coming closer. He stopped and faced the oncoming vehicle, raising his hand in question for a lift. The car, a black Jaguar, slowed down and came to a stop before him. The window rolled down and Hannibal was greeted by the familiar sight of two-colored eyes and a friendly smile.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" Celeste opened the door and let Hannibal enter "What are you doing here at this hour, Hannibal?"

He sat down on the passenger's seat and closed the door. "Taking a walk."

"A walk," she repeated as the car began to speed up slowly "Let me guess. You just wanted to see the pretty house up the Porte de Montempoivre, hoping to catch up for a nice hot tea with the owner."

Hannibal stared at her profile intently. The small smile was still on her lips, but her face was blank. "How did you know?"

"Vladis Grutas is a war criminal that's now a sex trafficker. He's a well-known figure among those who wish to do the same."

"Those who you punish?"

Hands clenched on the steering wheel. "Only when I catch them red-handed. What a way to change the topic! Honestly, Hannibal, I'm not that easily fooled."

Hannibal said nothing to that. They continued to ride in silence until Celeste reached the area with more buildings around.

"Where can I drop you off? I'm not sure if I know where you live, so you need to give me the directions."

"Do you know where rue de Paradis is?"

"You live on rue de Paradis?"

"No. I need to get to Gabrielle Instruments Co."

Celeste bit her lip in thought. "Gabrielle Instruments Co. Don't those guys help you when you're moving or something?"

"Yes. I need to send a big package somewhere." Celeste sent him a brief glance "A piano, not a bomb."

"Of course. A bomb would be too rude, wouldn't it? Yes, definitely too bold for you."

Hannibal smiled in amusement. Celeste saw in the corner of her eye and let her own lips curl upwards a bit. After a few minutes of riding in silence, Celeste turned left and stopped the car in front of a building with the large sign saying 'Gabrielle Instruments Co.'

"We're here." She announced uselessly. The sign reflected in Hannibal's eyes.

"Thank you, Celeste," he made a motion to grab the handle, when he felt her hand on his shoulder. He stopped and turned his head to look at her, like an owl.

"Hannibal," Celeste began "I talked to Lady Murasaki."

That caught him off guard, but he didn't let it show. He merely raised his eyebrow, indicating her to continue.

"She said… She told me about the danger you're in. She asked me to talk you out of it, but I thought… I thought, how could I do that? You didn't listen to _her_, even Lady Murasaki… _She_ wasn't able to convince you not to end what you've started… Who am I to make you change the road you're on?" Celeste's voice broke ever so slightly, as if she was about to break down any second now. She didn't. Her eyes, although shone strangely, were dry. "But then I thought… That you aren't doing this for nothing. And that, no matter how many people stand in your way, I will be at your side. All the way to the end. I promise."

Celeste took her hand from his shoulder and put both hands on the steering wheel. Her face was flushed a bit and her eyes were still shining with that strange light, but she kept her gaze straight.

"Should I wait here for you until you're done?" the girl asked in a neutral voice "You might be needing a lift, since you've left your bike God knows where."

"No, I'll be fine. Thanks."

"Well then," she nodded her head, not looking at him "Be careful."

"Goodnight." Hannibal exited her car and made his way towards the entrance of Gabrielle Instruments Co. He didn't look back, not even once.

Celeste waited until she heard the main door closing with a gentle slam. She closed her eyes and took in a large breath. She exhaled through her nose and opened her eyes again. She started the engine and slowly backed out of rue de Paradis, her mind oddly empty.


	5. Chapter 5

_Well, this is the final part! Thank you, _lily1121_, for Reviewing the fourth Chapter! All the informations presented in here are fiction; hence, FanFiction. Enjoy! _

* * *

Chapter Five

Celeste reached out her hand to open the heavy door, when suddenly they opened before her. The girl came face to face with Lady Murasaki. The two women stood in front of each other, eyes locked. It was Lady Murasaki, who broke the contact by moving to the side.

"Hello, Celeste." She greeted and nodded her head. Celeste bowed in return. "So, you heard."

"It was hard not to, Lady Murasaki, seeing as there is a large crowd of students shouting and demanding to free Hannibal." The blonde studied Lady Murasaki's face. Deep sadness reflected in her expression. Celeste decided she enjoyed the look on the beautiful woman's face. She passed her by, nodding slightly "If you excuse me, Lady Murasaki, I want to see him now."

Lady Murasaki did nothing in response. She merely watched as the young woman entered the room and the door closed behind her.

After Lady Murasaki left, Hannibal continued to stand in silence, his head lifting at the familiar scent of peaches. Then, he heard Lady Murasaki talking to someone who he soon recognized as Celeste. She entered the room a few moments later, the everlasting smile on her face. It seemed to be a bit wider than usual, then again, Hannibal hadn't seen her for a couple days. First, he'd chased after Grutas, blown up his boat, the police found him wandering around aimlessly and he was put in jail. It seemed like a year and not a few days since he last saw Celeste or smelled the scent of peaches that had always accompanied her.

Celeste stopped in front of him, cocking her head to the side to look at him. She studied him for a while before speaking.

"At least you're alive." The smile melted away slowly "I'm glad. Did you hear the shouts outside? They're calling your name. They want the police to release you. I think they will. Soon. You've become a celebrity, Hannibal."

"I'm glad to see you're all right too, Celeste. You've been working in the shadows, I heard." Hannibal had gotten the chance to read a couple newspapers. There were many reports of attacks on men in dark alleys. Hannibal wondered if Celeste has been luring them there on purpose, he wondered if she's been consciously rousing them just to have a pretext to beat the shit out of them, maybe even kill them. All the men were known for selling women to public houses or as serial rapists constantly escaping judgment.

"I had to keep myself busy."

"By putting rapists to punishment."

"Which they deserved. And, isn't that just what you've done?" Celeste took a small step forward "Wasn't all that their punishment?"

"That's different. I promised Mischa."

"Of course it's different!" she raised her voice slightly, but soon calmed down "The only difference is, you're here, in jail, and I'm still free. You know… I made a promise to someone as well. I've worked hard, and now I feel ready to fulfill it." She took out a piece of paper and showed him. It was a page ripped out of the newspaper. The headline announced a big party for American war veterans, held in Paris, in Kleber's – or Kolnas' – restaurant. Hannibal scanned the note briefly.

"Planning to pay your daddy a visit, aren't you?" Hannibal asked calmly.

"Not only him. All those people are responsible for my loss. Did you know that some of the American soldiers came to Germany and became Nazi? They've fought with the Soviet army, and one day, came across my house. They killed everyone, my step-father, my two half-brothers, then my oldest half-brother, they raped and killed my mother. They wiped out everything that was dear to me." Celeste's eyes flashed. She came even closer and whispered, "And now, I'm going to wipe them out. All of them."

Hannibal's eyes were locked with hers. The two of them stood in silence, then Celeste broke the eye-contact by turning around, her back facing him.

"I have to go now. Try to get yourself out of here as soon as you can." She looked at him one last time before walking out of the room "See you soon, Hannibal."

Hannibal watched as the door closed and heard Celeste's silent footsteps for a while, before everything was quiet again. The sweet scent of peaches soon melted into the air.

"I was wrong. There is someone I like just as much as you, if not a bit more, Lady Murasaki."

-

They all had no idea how did that happen. While the American soldiers had been entertaining themselves during the party, the restaurant suddenly shook violently due to the powerful explosion and the whole building had soon gotten engulfed in flames. It all lasted not longer than an hour. During that hour, everyone present in the restaurant had burnt to death.

A few hours earlier, during the tragedy, Colonel David Collins, age 47, lied on the floor, flames licking his body painfully. His throat was sore from screaming. He thought he'd heard something other than the damage caused by the fire. He thought he'd heard footsteps, quiet, calm footsteps. He raised his head to look at the person, who was approaching him slowly. His light blue eyes fell upon a dark silhouette; the person stopped a few feet in front of him and he could see long hair and a slender body. A female.

"Help…" he whispered hoarsely. The woman bent down and the flames enlightened her face. Blonde hair that looked almost orange due to he fire, eyes that held a different color, and a face he'd recognized. He saw a part of him in her face and suddenly understood.

The sound of sirens reached his ears, but he knew it was too late. His body ached beyond imagination and Collins wanted it all to stop.

"Welcome in Hell, father." The voice, so cold and mocking, rang from somewhere near his ear. He could sense the woman getting up and she disappeared. A few seconds later, Colonel Collins was dead. The fire fighters appeared two minutes and twenty-six seconds later, when everyone was already dead.

Hannibal was reading about the fire accident in the newspaper while sitting in the train's restaurant wagon, on his way to Baltimore, where he's gotten the stipendium in Johns Hopkins Medical Center. He finished reading the article, folded the paper and looked out of the window. The weather was nice. The clear blue color of the sky reminded him of Luca Bellusci's 'Tranquility'. And Celeste. The girl who craved acceptance, the girl who wanted a family. The extraordinary girl who wished to be normal. A person so alike to himself.

"_See you soon, Hannibal."_, she'd said back in the jail.

He wondered how soon her 'soon' will be.

* * *

_**Author's Note**__: That's the end of 'Crescent Moon'! It's officially complete, though a sequel might be possible; it all depends on a simple thing whether or not I will find the time to watch 'Red Dragon' and 'Hannibal'. I have both movies, along with 'The Silence of the Lambs' (which I've seen around 5 or 6 times), so the only problem is time. And inspiration._

_Review, please! :)_


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